


I 




01 1 022 855 7 






After pouR ^ 




THE 



Discovery of America 



TO BE COMMEMORATED BY AN 



InternatioDai Exposition 



CHICAGO, ILL., U. S. A. 



1 S Q 3 



DEPARTMENT OF PUBLICITY AND PROMOTION. 

WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION, 

CHICAGO. 



THE J. M. W. JONES STATIONERY AND PRINT NQ CO., CHICAGO, IM. 






When this Pamphlet is furnished to inquirers the replies thereto are 
marked in blue pencil. Additional copies will be supplied on request 
to any address, by MOSES P. HANDY, 

(^hief (if Dop'tof Publicity and Promotion, 
Chicago, Illincjis, U. 8. A. WovIcVp Coliimbiiiii Exposition. 






THE WORLD'S FAIR. 



two years ago the United States, as a representative nation of the 
New World, began to consider the propriety of celebrating the 
four hundredth anniversary of the discovery of America, by invit- 
ing the nations of the Old World to visit her shores. The closing de- 
cade of the most remarkable century in the Christian era, coinciding with 
the anniversary of an event unequaled in the history of this sphere, sug- 
gested the uniting of all mankind in a celebration of peace. The land 
where necessity and courage had fostered industry and wealth, pre- 
sented a fitting scene for such a gathering, Columbia, the youngest 
among the continents of the civilized world, should act the part of 
hostess at the celebration of her four hundredth birthday, by extending 
to the world an invitation to commemorate the event in a display of 
the material evidences of the progress of the human family. And 
such a commemoration should be called the World's Columbian 
Exposition. 

ACTION BY CONGRESS. 

The result of the popular demand for such a celebration was an 
Act of Congress, approved by the President of the United States, 
April 25, 1890, which declares that " it is fit and appropriate that the 
four hundredth anniversary of the discovery of America be commemor- 
ated by an exhibition of the resources of the United States of America, 
their development, and of the progress of civilization in the New 
World." 

The Act further declares that " such an exhibition should be of a 
national and international character, so that not only the people of our 
Union, and this Continent, but those of all nations, as well, can par- 
ticipate, and should, therefore, have the sanction of the Congress of the 
United States." 

To carry out this purpose the Act provides " that an exhibition of 
arts, industries, manufactures, and product of the soil, mine and sea 
shall be inaugurated in the year eighteen hundred and ninety-two, in 
the City of Chicago, in the State of Illinois." 

A Commission is provided for, consisting of two Commissioners and 
two Alternates from each State and Territory, and the District of 
Columbia, and eight Commissioners and eight Alternates at large, all 
of whom have been commissioned by the President of the United 
States. 

This Commission and a corporation organized under the laws of 
the State of Illinois, under the title of the "World's Columbian 
Exposition," are charged jointly with the task of making all needful 
preparations for the Exposition and conducting it to a successful ter- 
mination. The Commission is composed of representative citizens of 
various States and Territories composing the United States, while the 
Directory of the Illinois Corporation embraces some of the wealthiest, 
best known and most successful business and professional men in the 
City of Chicago. 

These two bodies are working in perfect harmony, with the com- 
mon purpose of making the Exposition worthy of the great historic 
event it is designed to commemorate, and a fitting illustration of the 



t 



2 AFTER FOUR CENTURIES. 

world's progress in civilization and in the various lines of human 
endeavor. 

THE PRESIDENT'S PROCLAMATION. 

The President of the United States has issued a Proclamation noti- 
fying the world that the Exposition will be held at the time and place 
named in the Act of Congress, and inviting all foreign countries to 
take part in the same: 

The Proclamation is as follows: 
By the President of the United States of America: 

A PROCLAMATION. 

Whereas, Satisfactory proof has been presented to me that pro- 
vision has been made for adequate grounds and buildings for the uses 
of the World's Columbian Exposition, and that a sum not less than 
$10,000,000, to be used and expended for the purposes of said Exposi- 
tion, has been provided in accordance with the conditions and require- 
ments of Section 10 of an Act entitled "An Act to provide for celebrat- 
ing the four hundredth anniversary of the discovery of America by 
Christopher Columbus by holding an International Exhibition of arts, 
industries, manufactures and the products of the soil, mine and sea, in 
the city of Chicago, in the State of Illinois," approved April 25, 1890. 

Now, Therefore, I, Benjamin Harrison, President of the United 
States, by virtue of the authority vested in me by said Act, do here- 
by declare and proclaim that such International Exhibition will be 
opened on the first day of May, in the year eighteen hundred and 
ninety-three, in the City of Chicago, in the State of Illinois, and will 
not be closed before the last Thursday in October of the same year. 

And in the name of the Government and of the People of the United 
States, I do hereby invite all the nations of the earth to take part in the 
commemoration of an event that is pre-eminent in human history and 
of lasting interest to mankind by appointing representatives thereto, 
and sending such exhibits to the World's Columbian Exposition as will 
most fitly and fully illustrate their resources, their industries and their 
progress in civilization. 

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused 
the seal of the United States to be affixed. 
Done at the city of Washington this twenty-fourth day of December, 

in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and ninety, and 

the independence of the United States the one hundred and 

fifteenth. 
By the President: Benj. Harrison. 

James G. Blaine, Secretary of State. 

DEDICATORY CEREMONIES, 

The Act of Congress provides for the dedication of the buildings of 
the World's Columbian Exposition in the City of Chicago on the twelfth 
day of October, eighteen hundred and ninety-two, with appropriate cere- 
monies. The exact character of these ceremonies has not been deter- 
mined, but a description of the same will be announced in due time. 
OPENING OF THE EXPOSITION. 

The Exposition will open on the first day of May, 1893, and will 
close not later than the thirtieth day of October thereafter. 

^y Transfer 
Gteoiogical Smverf 

*"^R 16 1931 



THE WORLD'S FAIR. 



FOREIGN EXHIBITS. 



Section eleven of the Act of Congress provides, "That all articles 
which shall be imported from foreign countries for the sole purpose of 
exhibition at the said Exposition, upon which there shall be a tariff or 
customs duty, shall be admitted free of payment of duty, customs fees, 
or charges under such regulations as the Secretary of the Treasury 
shall prescribe; but it shall be lawful at any time during the Exhibition 
to sell for delivery at the close of the Exposition any goods or property 
imported for and actually on exhibition in the Exposition buildings or 
on its grounds, subject to such regulations for the security of the reve- 
nue and for the collection of the import duties as the Secretary of the 
Treasury shall prescribe : 

^'Provided, That all such articles, when sold or withdrawn for con- 
sumption in the United States, shall be subject to the duty, if any, im- 
posed upon such articles by the revenue laws in force at the date of 
importation, and all penalties prescribed by law shall be applied and en- 
forced against such articles and against the persons who may be guilty 
of any illegal sale or withdrawal." 

Copies of the rules and regulations prepared by the Secretary of 
the Treasury in reference to the admission of foreign goods may be had 
on application to the Director General. 

Formal invitations to foreign governments, to participate in the Ex- 
position and appoint representatives thereto, are being issued by the 
State Department at Washington, together with the regulations adopted 
by the Commission, which latter will be transmitted to the diplomatic 
representatives of foreign nations for publication in their respective 
countries. 

UNITED STATES GOVERNISIENT EXHIBIT. 

Section Sixteen of the Act of Congress, in reference to the Exposi- 
tion, provides: - "That there shall be exhibited at said Exposition, by 
the Government of tHe United States, from its Executive Departments, 
the Smithsonian Institution, the United States Fish Commission, and 
the National Museum, such articles and materials as illustrate the func- 
tion and administrative faculty of the Government in time of peace, 
and its resources as a war power, tending to demonstrate the nature of 
our institutions and their adaptation to the wants of the people; and to 
secure a complete and harmonious arrangement of such a Government 
exhibit, a Board shall be created to be charged with the selection, 
preparation, arrangement, safe keeping, and exhibition of such articles 
and materials as the heads of the several departments and the Direct- 
ors of the Smithsonian Institution and National Museum may respect- 
ively decide shall be embraced in said Government exhibit. The Presi- 
dent may also designate additional articles for exhibition. Such Board 
shall be composed of one person to be named by the head of each Ex- 
ecutive Department, and one by the Directors of the Smithsonian In- 
stitution and National Museum, and one by the Fish Commission, such 
selections to be approved by the President of the United States. The 
President shall name the Chairman of said Board, and the Board itself 
shall select such other officers as it may deem necessary." 



4 AFTER FOUR CENTURIES. 

This Board has been appointed, and is now actively at work mak- 
ing preparations for an exhibit, which it is believed will be fully illus- 
trative of the rapid progress and advancement of the country since the 
organization of the Government. 

One of the interesting features of the Government Exhibit will be a 
life-saving station, erected on the shore of Lake Michigan, and in 
operation, fully equipped with all apparatus, furniture and appliances 
now in use in all the life-saving stations of the United States. 

STATE EXHIBITS. 

It is confidently believed that every State and Territory in the 
United States will be ofificially represented at the Exposition by Com- 
missioners appointed for the purpose, and by exhibits illustrating its 
resources and development. 

Several State Legislatures have already made appropriations for 
this purpose, and the question is now under consideration by the Legis- 
latures, now in session, in a number of other States. 

Some of the States and Territories will, no doubt, erect buildings of 
their own, and those that do not do so will be afforded ample space for 
exhibits in the buildings erected by the Exposition management. 

AWABDS. 

Awards are designed to mcricate some independent and essential ex- 
cellence in the article exhibited, and as an evidence of advancement in 
the state of the art represented by it. They will be granted, upon spe- 
cific points of excellence or advancement, formulated in words by a 
Board of Judges or Examiners, who will be competent experts; and the 
evidence of such awards will be parchment certificates, accompanied 
by bronze medals. 

Such awards will constitute an enduring, historical record of devel- 
opment and progress, and at the same time afford exhibitors lasting 
mementoes of their success. 

ADMINISTBATION OF THE EXPOSITION. 

Under the Act of Congress the duties pertaining respectively to the 
National Commission and the Illinois corporation are duly set forth, 
and each branch of the Administration is already pursuing its line of 
work as therein mapped out. The financial management of the enter- 
prise being vested in the Illinois corporation, executive power has, by 
mutual consent of both bodies, been deputed to the Director General, 
George R. Davis, of Chicago, 111. 

PLAN OF OBG-ANIZATION. 

The Director-General is the Chief Executive Officer of the Exposi- 
tion, and the work is divided into the following great departments: 

A— Agriculture, Food and Food Products, Farming Machinery and 
Appliances. 

B— Viticulture, Horticulture and Floriculture. 

C — Live Stock, Domestic and Wild Animals. 

D — Fish, Fisheries, Fish Products, and Apparatus of Fishing. 

E — Mines, Mining and Metallurgy. 

F — Machinery. 

G — Transportation Exhibits — Railways, Vessels, Vehicles, 



THE WORLD'S FAIR. g 

H — Manufactures. 

J— Electricity and Electrical Appliances. 

K — Fine Arts — Pictorial, Plastic and Decorative. 

L — Liberal Arts, Education, Engineering, Public Works, Architect- 
ure, Music and the Drama. 

M — Ethnology, Archseology, Progress of Labor and Invention — 
Isolated and Collective Exhibits. 

N — Forestry and Forest Products. 

O — Publicity and Promotion. 

P — Foreign Affairs. 

Chiefs of Departments of Agriculture, and Publicity and Promo- 
tion, have been appointed by the Director-General, and the Chiefs 
of the other Departments will be named as the exigencies of the ser- 
vice may require. 

BOABD OF LADY MANAGEBS. 

Section Six of the Act of Congress creating the World's Columbian 
Commission, authorized and required said Commissioners to appoint 
" a Board of Lady Managers, of such number and to perform such 
duties as may be prescribed by said Commission." 

In pursuance of this authority, the World's Columbian Commission, 
authorized the appointment of two Lady Managers from each State 
and Territory and the District of Columbia, eight Managers-at-Large, 
and nine from the City of Chicago, with alternates respectively — said 
Board to be convened at such time and place as the Executive Com- 
mitted of the World's Columbian Commission should direct, and when 
so convened, to organize by the election of a Chairman and a Secretary. 

By order of the Executive Committee, October 21, 1890, approved 
by the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States, the President 
of the World's Columbian Commission called a meeting of the Board 
of Lady Managers, on the 19th of November, 1890, in the City of 
Chicago, whereupon a permanent organization was effected by the 
election of Mrs. Potter Palmer, of Chicago, as President, and Miss 
Phoebe Couzins, of St. Louis, as Secretary. 

The Lady Managers invoke active co-operation with the var- 
ious organizations of the several States and Territories, in the work of 
proposed exhibits, and invite all women's organizations to work with 
and through them. Nor will they neglect the foreign field. Auxilli- 
aries will be formed with the good offices of diplomacy in all foreign 
countries, with a view to securing a comprehensive, interesting and in- 
structive exhibit of women's work in all lands. Where necessary, the 
Board will send its own agents to promote its purposes. A site, 
most desirable and commanding, has been secured, and a women's 
building, of appropriate design prepared by women architects, will be 
erected thereon. 

FINANCES. 

The Finances of the Exposition are in excellent shape, and fully 
warrant the statement that all the money necessary to make the Expo- 
sition a great success will be forthcoming. 

The Illinois Corporation, known as the "World's Columbian Expo- 
sition," was first organized with a capital stock of $5,000,000, which 



6 AFTER FOUR CENTURIES. 

has recently been increased to $10,000,000, of which about |6,ooo,ooo 
have been subscribed, and it is believed that the entire capital will be 
available as required. 

In addition to the above, the City of Chicago has authorized the 
issuance of $5,000,000 in bonds, and it is, therefore, safe to say that 
fully $15,000,000 will be provided in due time for the expenses of the 
Exposition. The United States will also appropriate from time to 
time, as maybe necessary, sums aggregating $1,500,000 for the Gov- 
ernment Exhibit and the expenses of the National Commission. 

SITE FOE THE EXPOSITION. 

A beautiful and suitable site has been selected for the Exposition, 
containing fully one thousand acres, charmingly situated on the shore 
of Lake Michigan. 

V Jackson Park, in the southern section of the City, has been selected 
as the site for the Main Exposition ; the Lake Front, near the heart of 
the City, for part of it, and the Midway Plaisance and Washington 
Park, adjoining Jackson Park, as reserves for possible other parts. 
Upon these parks there had already been expended nearly $4,000,000 
in improvements, prior to their being selected as the Exposition site. 

It is intended to use Jackson Park, in its entirety, for Exposition 
purposes, leaving the improved parts, as much as possible, in their 
present condition, while the unimproved parts will be laid out in a 
manner appropriate to the whole plan of buildings. 

The work of preparing the grounds for the Exposition is now in 
progress and leading architects, selected for the purpose, art busy 
making plans and specifications for the buildings. Ground was broken 
on the 27th of Jan., 1891. 

Work will begin on the buildings in the spring, and their construc- 
tion will be pushed so as to secure, beyond peradventure, their com- 
pletion in ample time for the needs of the Exposition. 

THE GROUNDS. 

la the preparation of the grounds the present northern inlet in 
Jackson Park will be farther extended and become a large lagoon, 
enclosing the island now covered with an extensive body of native 
wood. This will afford a natural landscape and supply an episode of 
scenery in refreshing relief to the grandeur of the buildings, and, 
through its sylvan qualities, to the crowded and busy aspect that must 
be looked for almost everywhere else within the grounds. 

From this lagoon a canal will continue the waterway southward 
along the main building, and into a large water basin which is to form 
the centre of a Great Square about which the principal buildings of the 
Exposition will be grouped. Fountains will be in operation in this 
basin, forming a brilliant spectacle in the sunlight, or when illumined 
by colored incandescent lamps at night. The banks cf these land- 
locked bodies of water are to be finished in a manner appropriate to 
the various localities through which they pass. The borders of the 
canal and the basin in the court will have embankments of stone or 
brick, surmounted by parapets or balustrades of stone, iron, brick or 
terra-cotta, and opening upon steps and landings, for the use of boat- 
ing parties. 



8 AFTER FOUR CENTURIES. 

guns, four 6-inch guns, twenty six-pounders, and a number of smaller 
guns which will be mounted on the upper deck and on the military 
mast. 

The vessels of which this building will'be a prototype are the largest, 
the heaviest, and the most formidable of any ever built in this country. 
They are also equipped with torpedo tubes and torpedo boats, and pro- 
tected by seventeen inch thickness of armor plating. 

It is not probable that the interior model of the ship can be exhib- 
ited in a satisfactory manner, but these different interiors will be shown 
in models as far as practicable. 

ADMINISTRATION BUILDING. 

The Administration Building will be the terminus of all transporta- 
tion lin-es, entering the Exposition grounds. Offices will be provided 
therein for bureaus of information, police, fire, public comfort, etc. It 
will combine architectural beauty with every facility for the dispatch 
of business. 

MACHINERY HAXL. 

The Machinery Hall, which will be larger than any before built, 
will not only cover machinery in the ordinary sense, but will furnish a 
great central open space, spanned with wide trusses, where there shall 
be the best chance possible for the display of the different transporta- 
tion exhibits. 

Railway tracks are to be laid in all passages, and covered with the 
floors when not in use, so that heavy machinery may be moved about 
at will. These railway tracks are to lead out upon the main lines in 
the grounds, so that locomotives and cars may enter and depart with- 
out delay. Power houses and heating plants will be constructed in 
connection with this building. 

MANITFACTURERS BUILDING. 

The main building for manufactures is to be arranged to serve 
many purposes. In it, either on the ground-floor level or above, 
are to be special isolated rooms for judges and for special societies or 
committees. Here are to be restaurant and toilet rooms, toward the 
canal and toward the lake. The lighting of this building is to be 
especially cared for, and heating provided where necessary for comfort 
or to carry on any exhibit. 

ELECTRIC AND MINING EXHIBITS. 

The Electric and Mining exhibits are to occupy each a building 
across the canal from the Manufactories Building, each adapted to its 
purpose and furnished with power. The one for electricity is to be 
adapted not only for power-house and light station, but for all displays 
and contests in manufacturing and by companies or persons in that 
business; and to be in itself, when seen from a distance, an object of 
beauty by day or night. 

This group of buildings, namely, the Administration, the Machinery, 
the Manufactories, the Mining and the Electric, are to form a whole in 
design; they are intended as a mass to be impressive, as a plan most 
convenient, and as structures to be very substantial. The materials 



THE WORLD'S FAIR. 7 

All walks and outdoor places for assemblages of people will be fur- 
nished with numerous seats and resting places, and will be paved with 
mosaics of brick, stone or concrete blocks, except where gravel or 
stone chips may seem more expedient. 

The grounds will, of course, be highly ornamented with shrubs, 
trees, turf and flowers. 

THE BUILDINGS. 

The buildings will be impressive in appearance, and to afford 
protection when the weather is inclement, a grand arcade will 
connect the buildings so that inconvenience may be reduced to a 
minimum. 

LAKE PIER. 

Opposite the Great Square, a pier, to be of such form and direction 
as may hereafter be determined, will project into the Lake about fifteen 
hundred feet. It is to be so constructed as to form a safe harbor for 
the landing of lake craft. 

The floor of this pier will slope gently from the shore, so that visi- 
tors may get an unobstructed view of the court and its surroundings,, 
the paved beach covered with people, and the architectural grandeur 
of the most imposing and important buildings of the Fair. 

A large restaurant and resting-place will be erected at the outer 
end of this pier, with a band-stand and dancing-floor in connection. 
This pier is intended to be a noted feature of the Exposition. 
GOVERNMENT BUILDING. 

The Government will furnish its own building and exhibits. A 
large open campus will be left for Government use and display. 

Across the inlet from the Government Exhibit will be the building 
for the Fisheries. A building here, as beautiful as possible in appear- 
ance, will be erected of durable materials, and fitted with every arrange- 
ment and detail to carry on the propagation, subsistence, and display of 
water animals. A plant for heating will be supplied. 

NAVAL EXHIBIT. 

It is proposed that the exhibit of the Navy Department shall be in 
a building detached from the main Government exhibit. The building 
is to be in the form, and of the dimensions of one of the new armored 
coast line battle ships (two of which are being constructed in Philadel- 
phia and one in San Francisco). 

It is not proposed to build a fac simile of a ship in all details, ex- 
cepting that part which is above the water. 

The berth deck of this vessel will be used, in the main, as the ex- 
hibit deck of models and various other naval appliances, such as have 
heretofore been shown on the exhibition floor of the previous exhibi- 
tions. 

The exterior, the main deck, the battery deck, and the military 
mast, will be a fac simile of the three battle ships now being constructed. 
The turrets will be in place, the guns in place, the boats in place, and, 
in fact, all the appliances as far as may be practicable. 

The armament of these vessels, and which will be represented in 
the proposed building, will consist of four 13-inch guns, eight 8-inch 



wkr' . 



THE WORLD'S FAIR. 9 

entering into their composition will be largely iron and masonry of 
brick and stone, though a free use will be made of terra cotta, wood 
and other materials. 

HORTICULTURAL EXHIBIT. 

Without destroying the improved part on the north, the Horti- 
cultural Exhibit is to be placed there upon the open meadow. The 
building will be largely of iron and glass, and furnished with a plant 
for purposes of heating and ventilating. The large open green in front 
of the building will be used for the out-of-door horticultural exhibits. 
Among the trees near this location, and placed in a way to preserve 
them, will be a few small, finely-designed houses, either for the States 
or of some archaeological interest. 

An imposing entrance arch and Administration Station is to be 
placed on the Midway Plaisance, that may be permanent, and is there- 
fore to be of lasting materials. 

AGRICULTURAL AND LIVE STOCK EXHIBITS. 

The Agricultural and Live Stock Exhibits will be located in the 
southwestern portion of the park, where the land is comparatively high 
and well protected. For Agriculture, which includes food products, 
agricultural implements and machinery, a main building is to be erected, 
in size and arrangement adapted to every need of this great depart- 
ment, and having an independent heating plant. There is also a 
separate department for forestry and forest products. 

For live stock the buildings are to be adapted to the needs as shall 
be expressed by those having this department in charge. In general 
there will be housing for stock and their attendants, and hospitals for 
the animals. There will be grand stands and display wings, and other 
buildings to meet all proper requirements. These buildings are to be 
temporary, but will be carefully designed with due regard to beauty and 
general effect. 

Realizing the importance of the Agricultural and Live Stock Ex- 
hibits, it is the intention of the designers to make these departments 
interesting in plan and appearance by all the arts at their command. 
A proposition to set apart $200,000 for cash premiums for the Live 
Stock Exhibits is being considered, and favorable action on it is ex- 
pected. 

ART EXHIBIT. 

It is the intention to locate on the Lake Front Park, near the heart of 
the city, the buildings required for Department "K," embracing Fine 
Arts, Pictorial, Plastic and Decorative, and also a portion of Depart- 
ment '*L." 

Ample station facilities will be provided for the crowds who will 
make this ground a starting place for their visits to Jackson Park. 

OTHER ATTRACTIONS. 
Among the various independent attractions which have been sug- 
gested in connection with the Exposition may be mentioned a tower 
1,492 feet high, an immense mine showing the mineral wealth of the 
country, a floating palace hotel on Lake Michigan, a fountain of Cali- 
ornia wines, a coal palace, a corn palace, an exhibit of shoe and 



10 AFTER FOUR CENTURIES. 

leather industries of the world — for which latter purpose it is proposed 
to raise a fund of $100,000 for a special building — and other ingenious 
devices. 

LIGHT, HEAT, POWER, ETC. 

Electricity. — The lighting of the Exposition will be by electricity, 
and much of the power to be supplied will be by the same means. 
Displays are to be made under fountains and water-ways, and possibly 
under the outer lake itself. 

^ Steam. — The special large plant will be at the Machinery Building, 
from which heat and power may be transmitted to the Administration 
Building. 

In other places needing steam there will be separate plants. 

Gas. — Gas is to be used as little as possible, and only when de- 
manded for set purposes of manufacture, or very late lighting. 

Water. — An arrangement will be made with the City of Chicago to 
furnish all the water required for Exposition purposes. 

All buildings for exhibits are to be designed with reference to the 
health and convenience of attendants and visitors, and provided with 
spaces for taking care of packing cases and extra goods, with due 
regard for the safety of the contents; but it is impossible to go into 
further particulars about the planning or exteriors at this early date. 

Sewerage. — This work will be handled by those most expert, to in- 
sure a perfect fulfilling of its functions. 

TRANSPORTATION. 

All public passenger railways, whether steam, cable, electric or 
horse, will enter the Park at the southwest corner, though any of them 
may have stations at the Midway Plaisance, or other convenient places, 
if kept outside the grounds. Roads entering the enclosure will deliver 
passengers inside the Administration Building, and from this place an 
intramural, electric, elevated road will pass out through the grounds, 
entering buildings, where deemed advisable, and having convenient sta- 
tions where necessary. It will connect with the station at the Midway 
Plaisance and pass back to the Administration Building by another 
route, thus forming a complete circuit, and making it easy to go from 
one place to another without walking. 

Visitors once in the Fair will come out of the Administration Station 
upon the Great Square, where all the spaces will be very broad, afford- 
ing ample room for the gathering or dispersing of large crowds. 
Wheeled chairs and other means of conveyance are to be always kept 
in attendance at this point. 

DEMANDS FOR SPACE. 

Large as the area for the forthcoming exhibit undoubtedly is, it 
will require the greatest circumspection on the part of those entrusted 
with the allotment of space to prevent its being inadequate. Already 
two States have signified their desire to occupy each ten acres of 
ground and as a means to filling the same, have decided to appropriate 
$1,000,000 for their respective State exhibits, and to erect separate 
buildings for that purpose. 



THE WORLD'S FAIR. 11 

EXPOSITION OFFICES. 

Commodious quarters have been fitted up in the Rand-McNally 
Building, at Chicago, 111., and are now occupied by the Exposition 
officers, of both the Chicago Directory and the National Commission. 

Visitors to Chicago, who feel an interest in the Exposition, are 
invited to call at the Exposition Headquarters, where any information 
they may desire on the subject will be cheerfully furnished. 

INFORMATION FOR EXHIBITORS. 

Copies of the classification, in pamphlet form, rules and regulations, 
blank applications to exhibitors, and all other necessary blank forms, 
as well as information which may be desired, and which is not con- 
tained in this pamphlet, will be furnished on application to 
Hon. George R. Davis, Director-General, 

World's Columbian Exposition, 

Chicago, Illinois, U. S. A. 

OFFICERS OF THE WORLD'S COIitTMBIAN COMMISSION. 

Thos. VV. Palmer, Michigan. .... President. 

Thos. M. Waller, Connecticut . . First Vice-President. 

M. H. DeYoung, California . ' . . Second Vice-President. 
Davidson B. Penn, Louisiana . . . Third Vice-President. 
Gorton W. Allen, New York . . , Fourth Vice-President. 

Alexander B. Andrews, North Carolina . Fifth Vice-President. 

John T. Dickinson, Texas Secretary. 

James A. McKenzie, Kentucky, Vice-Chairman Executive Committee. 
A. B. Hurt, Tennessee, . Assistant Secretary for the Ex. Committee. 

OFFICERS OF THE WORLD'S COLUMBIAN EXPOSITION. 

LOCAL BOARD. 

Lyman J. Gage President. 

Thos. B. Bryan First Vice-President. 

Potter Palmer Second Vice-President. 

A. F. Seeberger Treasurer. 

Benjamin Butterworth Secretary. 

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE. 

Lyman J. Gage. Thomas B. Bryan. 

Potter Palmer. Dewitt C. Cregier. 

Ferd. W. Peck. Erskine M. Phelps. 

Edwin Walker. Wm. E. Strong. 

W. T. Baker. Chas. L. Hutchinson. 

M. M, Kirkman. Otto Young. 
R. C, Clowry. 

EXECUTIVE. 

George R. Davis, Director-General. 
Moses P. Handy . Chief, Department Publicity and Promotion. 
W. I. Buchanan . , . Chief, Department of Agriculture. 
Joseph Hirst, Florida Secretary, Installation. 



12 AFTER FOUR CENTURIES. 

CHIGAQO. 

THE EXPOSITION CITY. 



In the selection of a location for the Columbian Exposition, the 
Congress of the United States encountered a difficulty such as no 
legislative body had ever experienced when considering such a subject. 
In older countries the capital ranks so far ahead of other cities that the 
mere suggestion of an international exposition carries with it the 
understanding that the seat of such exposition shall be the national 
capital. Thus London, Paris, Berlin, Vienna and other European 
capitals have been acknowledged to possess an unchallenged right to 
an international exhibition, whenever their respective countries have 
decided to hold such a celebration. In the United States, however, 
the spirit of democracy is carried out even to a rivalry between the 
great cities of the country. Thus it happens that there are at least 
five cities of such a metropolitan character that any one of them could 
adequately provide for the needs of an international exposition. New 
York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Boston and St. Louis are all of the rank 
of exposition cities. At any one of these the Columbian Exposition 
might have been held with fair assurance of success. Between three of 
these, New York, Chicago and St. Louis ensued a friendly contest as 
to which should have the honor of entertaining the visitors of the 
exposition. The result of this contest was the selection of Chicago, 
and the graceful acceptance of that selection by the country at large. 

A TYPICAL AMERICAN METBOPOLIS. 

Chicago is the typical American City in age, extent and develop- 
ment. Sixty years ago, the population of Chicago, according to the 
government report, consisted of three families occupying log cabins — 
to-day it is the second city in the United States, having a population 
of 1,250,000, which also entitles it to the rank of seventh among the 
great cities of the world. The three log cabins mentioned in the 
government report of sixty years ago have multiplied into a city 
possessing over 2,000 miles of street frontage, a river frontage of 
nearly 50 miles, and a lake frontage of nearly 20 miles. Condemned 
half a century ago as an unhealthy swamp, the Chicago of to-day 
boasts an exceptional sanitary record, its average rate of mortality, 
17.49 per 1,000, comparing favorably with any center of population of 
equal dimensions in the world. A little over fifty years ago Chicago 
was barely deemed of sufficient area to be admitted to the dignity of 
a city. To-day it comprises upward of 170 square miles within its 
municipal limits. Twenty years ago the city was devastated by a dis- 
aster unequaled in modern history, a conflagration which destroyed 
nearly twenty thousand buildings, resulting in a loss of $200,000,000. 
of which, however, not a trace remains in the city of to-day. 



THE WORLD'S FAIR. 



SEAMMOTH BUILDINaS. 



Within the present city of Chicago are buildings of a magnitude 
such as are unequalled elsewhere, huge structures, ten, twelve, sixteen 
and even twenty stories in height, in one of which it is estimated 
that upwards of 20,000 people, or ten times the population of Illinois 
at the beginning of the century, have been present at one time. 
Nature herself has apparently aided the exertions of man in con- 
verting the swamp of fifty years ago into a magnificent metropolis. 
The average mean temperature from May i to November 30 being 59.6 
Fahrenheit, during the past six years, varied between 39 9 in Novem- 
ber to 75.5 in July. For the exceptionally favorable health statistics, 
Chicago is largely indebted to its unrivaled park and boulevard 
system. The parks proper include an area of nearly 2,000 acres. 
The boulevards offer an almost unbroken driveway around the central 
portion of the city, upwards of 30 miles long varying from 100 to 200 
feet in width. 

MARITIME TRADE. 

Half a century ago the arrival of such a squadron as Columbus 
commanded four hundred years ago would have been an event of im- 
portance in Chicago, which today is the second port in the United States 
in respect to tonnage and the first in number of vessels arriving and 
clearing. Upwards of 25,000 vessels with a tonnage of nearly 
9,000,000 tons arrive and clear each year. 

In every branch of industry the progress of Chicago has been 
phenomenal to such an extent that the city itself will constitute one 
of the most remarkable exhibits of the century. 

A PHENOMENAL INDUSTRY. 

The single butcher shop which represented the meat industry of 
early Chicago, has given place to an industry which annually receives 
upwards of 10,000,000 head of live stock valued at $200,000,000, and 
ships upwards of one thousand million pounds of dressed meats, 
besides one million cases of canned meat and barrels of pork. The 
human family further looks to Chicago as the food dispensary for an 
annual supply of nearly one hundred million bushels of wheat, corn, 
oats, rye and barley, in addition to nearly two million barrels of flour. 

CHICAGO AS A RAILWAY CENTER. 

For the clearance of this volume of traffic, in addition to the water 
facilities, there are twenty-seven (27) railways terminating in Chicago. 
They reach from Chicago to the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, Lake 
Superior and the Gulf of Mexico, and all the great cities of the United 
States and Canada, as well as the borders of Manitoba and Mexico. 
These lines vary in length from 50 to 7,000 miles. 

There are six (6) Union depots in the city, handsome and commodi- 
ous structures, besides two (2) depots used exclusively by the lines 
which own them. 

A passenger may enter at Chicago a luxuriously furnished sleeping 
car, and without leaving it, reach all of the principal sea-board cities 
of the United States, as well as railway lines leading into Canada on 



14 AFTER FOUR CENTURIES. 

the North, and Mexico on the South. Nine hundred and two exclu- 
sively passenger trains arrive and depart at Chicago each day, of which 
248 are through or express trains, the remainder, suburban and accom- 
modation trains. It is estimated that fully 175,000 people arrive and 
depart each day at Chicago. 

In the way of warehouses and trackage the railroad facilities are so 
great that even the tremendous pressure brought about by a World's 
Fair will hardly be looked upon as a strain. Several belt lines encircle 
the city, affording connection and transportation facilities with every 
entering railroad, thus giving direct connection between depots located 
at a distance from each other. 

Add to this modern convenience, the fact that the actual yard facil- 
ities for the storage of freight, pending its delivery, are already in ex- 
cess of local requirements, large as they are, and the fact that in nearly 
every case they can be increased if necessary, the result is a combination 
of freight facilities practically perfect. 

HOTEL ACCOMMODATIONS. 

To the exhibitor and visitor who will have occasion to test Chicago's 
accommodations in the matter of hospitality, it may be mentioned that 
there are upwards of fourteen hundred hotels in the city with an aver- 
age capacity for housing 100 guests each. In several of the larger 
hotels upwards of 1,000 people have been entertained, and in the mat- 
ter of hotel building there are several new structures in process of com- 
pletion, which will make the hotel accommodations of the city at the 
date of the Exposition equal to 200,000. In addition to the hotels 
proper there are upwards of 5,000 private boarding houses and about 
half that number of tenement flats where strangers can be provided 
with sleeping accommodations. Conservative figures place the estimate 
of Chicago's capacity as furnishing accommodation for 300,000 stran- 
gers. 

TRANSPORTATIOlsr FACILITIES. 

The transportation of such an enormous crowd is amply provided 
for. A system of cable and horse power street cars and suburban rail- 
way trains traverses the city in every direction, the daily capacity of 
which is nearly 3,000,000 passengers. In addition the city will shortly 
be enriched by at least two elevated railroad systems, which the throng 
of street traffic has rendered imperative. 

CITY GOVERNMENT. 

The government of this vast community is entrusted to a Mayor 
and City Council, under whose jurisdiction the administration of the city 
is conducted in a manner that compares favorably with that of any city of 
its magnitude. The police force includes 1,036 men, a number which 
would be inadequate for the proper government of such a metropolis 
were it not for the admirable system of telegraph stations dotted over 
the city at distances a quarter of a mile apart, and the police patrol 
wagons which stand in readiness day and night to be summoned to the 
scene of a disturbance at a moment's notice. 



ISf THE WORLD'S FAIR. 15 

FIRE DEPARTMENT. 

Admirable as the police system is, the fire department of the city is 
still more worthy of commendation. The great fire of 187 1 taught a 
severe lesson to the citizens of Chicago, and the result is a fire depart- 
ment unequaled in any city in the world. It includes 56 steam fire 
engines, 12 chemical engines, 21 hook and ladder trucks, 3 fire boats, 
I stand pipe and water tower, 380 horses and 800 men. On the occa- 
sion of distinguished visitors beirfg the guests of the city authorities, it 
is one of the sights of the city to demonstrate the effectiveness of the fire 
department. The fire alarm telegraph system places the means at the 
disposal of any citizen to summon half a dozen fire engines to any point 
in the city in an incredibly short space of time. The ease and marvel- 
lous rapidity with which the department acts in answer to a summons 
has elicited the admiration of all who have witnessed it. 

WATER STJPPLY. 

In the matter of water supply Chicago is exceptionally well pro- 
vided. Lying on the shore of Lake Michigan, the city is never with- 
out on adundance of water. At distances from two to four miles from 
the shore are inlets to subterranean water tunnels, yielding a daily sup- 
ply of 150,000,000 of gallons. Additional tunnels are now in course of 
construction and will be completed before the opening of the Exposi- 
tion. To preserve the waters of Lake Michigan from contamination by 
city sewage, a system of drainage has been adopted whereby the course 
of the Chicago river, the present outlet for the sewers, has been re- 
versed and instead of emptying into Lake Michigan, the river is 
pumped out into other channels inland, thence through the Illinois 
river to the Mississippi. 

POSTOFFICB. 

The Chicago postoffice furnishes statistics which perhaps show the 
metropolitan character of the city better than any other data which 
may be quoted. Thus it appears that during a single year over 500,- 
000,000 mail packages passed through the office, in addition to 27,000 
tons of mail matter transferred from incoming to outgoing trains. The 
present post office building, which was erected twenty years ago, at a 
cost of about $4,000,000, has already been found inadequate to 
the wants of the department, and an agitation is now in progress to 
rebuild it on a scale that will make the Chicago postoffice exceed 
in cubic measurement even the great mail distributing center at 
St. Martin's, London. In addition to receiving and dispatching local 
mail, the post office at Chicago is the headquarters for the Sixth Divi- 
sion Railway Mail Service, which employs 856 railway clerks in thedis- 
stribution of mails on cars throughout Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska and 
Wyoming. The Inspector in charge at the Chicago post office has 
under his jurisdiction 16,000 postmasters and their employes, dispersed 
through the States of Illinois, Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota 
and the Dakotas. 

THE PRESS OF CHICAGO. 

• There are 531 newspapers published in Chicago, and the extent of 
their circulation may be gauged from the 3t5itement that 20,000,000 



16 AFTER FOUR CENTURIES. 

pounds of serial matter finds its way through the Chicago post office 
annually. 

It would be possible to multiply statistics upon statistics showing 
the wisdom of Congress in selecting Chicago as the seat of the Colum- 
bian Exposition. As, for example, that there are nearly 500 churches, 
with an average weekly attendance of 120,000; twenty-five theatres, 
with a seating capacity for 35,000; 120 public schools, and so forth. 
But to recount statistics of a city which yearly adds nearly fifty miles 
to its buildings would be a futile labor, and, moreover, their present 
showing would be comparatively inaccurate at the date of the Colum- 
bian Exposition of 1893. 

PREPAKATIONS FOR THE EXPOSITION. 
The preparations which Chicago has made for the forthcoming Ex- 
position give promise of this celebration being equal to any which the 
world has seen. Under the terms of the Act of Congress provid- 
ing for the Exposition, at least $10,000,000 had to be raised before the 
President of the United States could issue his proclamation inviting the 
world to participate in the enterprise. Of this sum the people of Chi- 
cago have authorized the municipal government to raise $5,000,000, 
pledging the City's credit for such amount, and the remaining $5,000,- 
000 has been forthcoming by public subscription to the stock of the 
local corporation. Of the latter organization it may be said that it 
fairly represents the people of the Western Metropolis, its list of 30,- 
000 shareholders including representatives of every condition of society, 
trade and profession. The original amount intended to be raised, 
namely, $5,000,000, has already been more than subscribed, and the 
Directors of the Association have every confidence that an additional 
capital of $5,000,000 will be forthcoming, thus giving the Exposition 
a fund of $15,000,000, in addition to the $1,500,000 appropriated for 
the Government Exhibit. 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 




1 



/ 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 





011022 855 7 0i 



